Mandatory ISP-level filter won't lift cyber safety

The Federal Government’s proposed mandatory Internet Service Provider (ISP) filter has been dealt another blow with some of the internet’s largest companies arguing the technology alone will not increase the cyber safety of young Australians.

Speaking at a joint committee hearing into cyber safety, Jennifer Duxbury, Compliance, Regulatory and Corporate Affairs Director at ninemsn, said the mandatory ISP-level filter would not aid cyber safety.

“The government’s proposed response to the issue [of cyber safety] — that is the mandatory filter — our view would be that the decision was made very quickly and we believe it would be good to see the possibility of a voluntary program explored before we have to move to a regulatory response,” she said.

According to Duxley, the experience of other countries, particularly the UK, had shown that a voluntary ISP filter can achieve positive results.

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